Wednesday, January 11, 2006
Espresso Americano
I'm sitting in a very comfortable armchair at Espresso Americano, at the Bellevue Art Museum. I ordered a double ristretto cappuccino, Erik went for a double ristretto mocha. Not bad! Actually, my cappuccino is pretty darn good - the art was a little "oops!" but the taste is very nice. It's a little bit of a lighter espresso roast from what I can tell - bright without being tart or acidic. I'd describe it as more of a "glow" than a "spotlight" if you know what I mean.I don't think it's attributable to the fact that they were ristretto shots - and it's not at all unpleasant. Some espresso blends tend to be very "heavy" and "smoky" and sometimes that's a bit more decadent and indulgent than I'd like, especially when I'm sitting down for a rest and a "refresher" at noon. It's like having an after dinner cocktail after lunch.
So while the little spicy, sweet-sharp liveliness was very unexpected in an espresso, but not bad. It works. The cappuccino was very nice. The only complaint I'd have is that the foam seemed a little thin, but that could be environmental, as it is VERY humid today - it's pouring down rain like a garden hose.
Erik's mocha was full flavored and not too sweet - very well executed. I liked the hot fudge drizzle on top of the puff of whipped cream - not a huge PILE of it, when will people learn to go easy on the whip?! - and the perfect blend of coffee and chocolate flavor.
A great afternoon stop, I'm glad we ducked in here to avoid the downpour - the sign saying "free wifi" right below "free-pour latte art" is what hooked us and the coffee is great. Nice atmosphere, jazz on the stereo, modern contemporary but comfy, not stiff and pretentious. It works as a museum cafe, but also as a nice little coffeeshop.
I snapped some pix of our drinks, I'll post them later.
I'm out, there's more to see and do and it's only 12:40pm!
link | Kristin W. posted at 12:30 PM |
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